Justice Bird shouts at Arata, “Come on, Justice Knight, we are going to liberate these people of the Erlking’s territory, as is the duty belonging to the hero of the black forest!”

  Rachamah’s disguise is literally just her wearing a columbina mask and Arata was the same person with one of Celine's spare helmets. Rachamah was weirdly into the bit, it felt surreal.

  I should explain the plan I am proposing to everyone else here. Arata clears his throat, trying to make his voice deeper and manly, “Rach- Justice Bird, we’re going to prepare for an all-out assault. It will be deadly but it is vital to ensure the night does not take another victim.”

  Everyone pauses in silence, Clemence chuckles a little before Rachamah speaks up, “Justice Knight, no one understands what you're saying?”

  You're the one who started the bit, why is she the one who looks cool, I look like more of a middle schooler despite her age?! Arata’s mouth, unbeknownst to everyone else, twitches underneath his helmet.

  Arata pauses, he thinks about how to do it better before giving up, “Fairies have immortal regenerating bodies, the more you kill, the less it gets you. Fighting passively is useless since the only way to thin the numbers is to kill the Erlking. There isn't another option, I know how to fight the various types of monsters and Justice Bird is our ultimate weapon against the Erlking.”

  Rachamah absorbed the fungi corrupted by the Erlking… I don't know how it will work out in practice but it's too dangerous for most people to fight the Erlking. The hero's party all stop, hesitant to trust a random kid to fight the Erlking.

  Clemence speaks up, “I can vouch for Rachamah's ability… she's the reason Beelzebub went into hiding, to escape her and regain its strength.”

  Ralph nods along, who had initially been a word away from being reduced to a paste by Rachamah's new weapon, which she affectionately named pestle. Elias seems more excited yet unnerved than anything.

  The paladin, Elias, reaches out his hand to shake Rachamah’s, “We’re all willing to count on you then, Justice Bird.”

  Upon making hand contact, Elias breaks out into an uncomfortable sweat. Rachamah's grip wasn't heavy or particularly strong but Rachamah's gluttony could seem indiscriminate based on her mood.

  With that, Celine leads Arata and the rest of the soldiers back to the base while on the way he explains the basics of fighting the different types of fairies, “the alraune are by far the biggest threat, making up the majority of an army, they excel against bigger groups when they can be split up or isolated yet they rely on the command of the dryads. The dryads can freely move throughout the wood, unlike normal dryads, these can inhabit dead trees… I would recommend burning all the wood, not even risking it in the camp. The two of them need each other since the dryads can't attack and the alraune are for the most part mindless.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  Ralph raises his hand, “We don't have enough fire mages though. There's not going to be enough fire.”

  Chive butts in, finally having a spot to leave her input, “We have elves, both archers who can use gasoline-tipped arrows and fire mages.”

  Arata pauses. The alraune and dryads were what he considered to be the biggest threat but there was another factor he didn't think about. How many fairy knights does the Erlking have? They always regenerate in their armor so I might be the only one who can kill them. Maybe if Rachamah ate them? “The fairy knights are the other aspect of the Erlking's army. They can influence the environment around them and regenerate inside their armor… I have a-”

  Arata decides not to say anything when Rachamah steps in, “Arata… you don't need to explain why, everyone here vital to the operation should still know that you have the ability to prevent their immortality.”

  Wow, eloquent way of saying the hero’s party is worthless. Kind of rude for her to say.

  Arata nods to her point. The hero's party all stand there in silence to assess what they just heard. My unwillingness to share that point… I feel like it's impacted their trust in me and the plan.

  The opposite was, however, true. Clemence pats Arata on the back, “We’ve been needing someone like you on the front lines for a LONG time.”

  With that comment, Justice Bird and her sidekick Justice Knight make their way alongside the hero's party to the base. To say it was more expensive would be an understatement. The outpost had the population of a small city, about ten thousand men all in tents or other forms of temporary shelter across rolling hills, at the center of which was a tall stone bastion, likely belonging to the elves before it was repurposed.

  The Duo of Justice made their way into the interior of the stone walls. Meeting a man who had a gruff face, slowly losing its edge to sleepless nights of fighting.

  Celine introduces the man, “This is Commander Hazing. Commander, these two are Justice Knight and Justice Bird. They are the heroes of this forest who wish to aid us.”

  Commander Hazing looks insulted, “Why the fuck do I have to deal with two anonymous hooligans? I wouldn't trust those two to pick up my horse’s shit.”

  Clemence sighs before pointing out, “because you can't do anything yourself. We have done nothing but sit at base waiting as the men run dry on willpower and resources.”

  The commander goes silent, a sore spot was indeed hit with that point before Clemence continues, explaining Arata's information on the Erlking, the new formations and battle strategy. Clemence speaks with confidence in the plan, more than Arata would ever have.

  Damn… the commander’s getting bullied there. Clemence sometimes has a short fuse but in this case, I think he had it coming.

  What Ravenna said to him really stuck, all the way back when they got ambushed, this was still Arata's plan. His ability was never one about allowing him to go back and change the outcomes around him. It was insurance that he would move closer to an outcome. It locked away acts of cowardice, there was no way out through death, nor a way to go back.